US airstrikes beat back ISIS, bolster Kurds in Kobani.
US-led aerial campaign against Islamic State militants, known as ‘Operation Inherent Resolve,’ has intensified over the past two days. The escalation in airstrikes has helped embattled Kurdish fighters regain ground in the Syrian city of Kobani.
Coalition strikes have trebled over last week, with nearly 40 airstrikes being launched in the past 48 hours, Reuters reported.
The aerial bombardment has centered around the Syrian town of Kobani, where besieged Kurdish fighters have desperately battled off a lightning Islamic State (IS) siege to capture the city.
According to Reuters, the US military conducted 21 and 18 strikes on militant targets in or near the town in the two 24-hour periods since Monday. In contrast, the previous week saw the area targeted roughly half a dozen times a day.
The intensified campaign, which has become increasingly effective due to intelligence and on-the-ground coordination with Kurdish fighters, has resulted in at least 32 IS militants being killed in that 48-hour period.
It has also paid dividends for Kurdish fighters who were at risk of being engulfed by the IS advance within “a matter of days.”
On Wednesday, a black IS flag raised on a hill overlooking Kobani was torn down after militants were targeted by coalition air strikes.
